West Wind (audio)

Host Dr. Jack West speaks with Sarah Mojarad, communications expert training scientists and medical students in how to integrate social media and build an online brand to extend the reach of their work while maintaining professionalism.

Dr. Jack West, medical oncologist at City of Hope Cancer Center, considers how the risks & new medical landscape borne of COVID-19 is streamlining cancer care in some constructive ways and bringing overdue advances to how we run clinics & meetings.

Dr. Christian Rolfo, now at University of Maryland after training in Argentina, Italy, & other parts of Europe, speaks with Dr. West about his focus on phase I clinical trials & liquid biopsies, and having close connections with people around the world.

Host Jack West speaks with Dr. Nate Pennell of Cleveland Clinic about his path into thoracic oncology, the role of social media, & uncertainty about larger medical conferences & a growing place for virtual learning in the wake of a COVID-19 pandemic.

Dr. Charu Aggarwal from University of Pennsylvania Abramson Cancer Center joins Dr. Jack West to discuss new data on plasma-based testing for tumor mutational burden (TMB) & the current state of liquid biopsies, TMB, & immunotherapy-based options today.

Dr. Jarushka Naidoo, medical oncologist at Johns Hopkins, speaks with host Jack West about her path from childhood TV star in South Africa, to medical training and stage acting in Dublin, to US-based expert on toxicities of cancer immunotherapy.

Host Jack West reviews the gulf between the best evidence-based cancer care guidelines & performance in broad clinical practice, exploring contributing factors & potential new models to improve US-based molecular oncology practice.

Dr. Alfredo Addeo, Sr Oncology Consultant at Geneva University Hospital, chats with Dr. Jack West about his path of growing up in Italy, moving to the UK, then Switzerland, & his adventures practicing medicine in different cultures & health care systems.

Host Jack West traces the remarkable path of Dr. Brandon Mahal from disadvantaged childhood immersed in gang culture to UCLA, then Harvard Medical School, training in radiation oncology, & a promising career focused on cancer care disparities.

Host Jack West chats with Dr. Marina Garassino, lung cancer specialist in Milan, about how she developed her interest in lung cancer and clinical research as a single mother of two daughters, as well as how she prioritizes mentorship of women trainees.

Dr. Petros Grivas, genitourinary (GU) cancer expert at the Univ of Washington/Seattle Cancer Care Alliance, describes his path from Greece to the US, his compulsion to deliver, & the challenge of deciding when to stay vs. move on for new opportunities.

Host Dr. Jack West chats with Dr. Nina Niu Sanford, radiation oncologist at UT-Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, TX, about her efforts to weave her commitments to her young family into her efforts to define her clinical & research trajectory.

Dr. Nina Niu Sanford, radiation oncologist at UT-Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, TX, speaks with host Jack West about moving from China in childhood, being raised in Boston, & the path into radiation oncology.

Host Dr. Jack West chats with Dr. Stacy Gray, expert in molecular testing patterns and attitudes, about current hurdles in broad adoption of comprehensive testing in cancer care, as well as ways to overcome them.

Dr. Stacy Gray from City of Hope Cancer Center speaks to host Jack West about the evolution of her career focus on adoption of and attitudes about molecular testing, including an early interest in direct-to-consumer (DTC) genetic testing.

Dr. Jack West speaks with London-based thoracic oncology expert Dr. Sanjay Popat about delivering the best molecular testing & cancer care possible in a nationalized system limited by cost concerns, & looming uncertainties around Brexit.

Dr. Sanjay Popat from London, UK chats with host Jack West about his background growing up in London, medical and oncology training in the UK, and how he entered into thoracic oncology as a career focus.

Host Dr. Jack West speaks with Dr. Fumiko Chino, radiation oncologist at Memorial Sloan-Kettering and caregiver to a young spouse who died of cancer, about the under-appreciated but severe and shame-inducing impact of cost and financial toxicity among families of patients with cancer.

Dr. Fumiko Chino, radiation oncologist at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, describes to host Jack West the impact of a mother as a successful radiation oncologist, & the many struggles of serving as a caregiver to a young adult spouse with cancer.

Dr. Taofeek Owonikoko of Winship Cancer Institute at Emory University speaks with Dr. Jack West about his decision to retrain in oncology, the draw he felt to thoracic oncology and small cell lung cancer, & a few cultural challenges he felt along the way.